anywho, these are the suv options we have been looking into...
{Toyota 4Runner}
{Toyota FJ Cruiser}
{GMC Yukon/Chevrolet Tahoe}
{Ford Expedition}
{Ford Explorer}
and these are the truck options we have been looking into...
{Ford F150}
{Chevrolet Silverado}
obviously some are at the low end of our price range and some are at the high end. and although we firmly believe in purchasing used cars, there are some great financing deals on new ones.
we are taking the following things into consideration:
* mileage - we don't want anything with more than 30k miles on it
* amount of trunk storage
* amount of seating (2 rows versus 3 rows)
* gas mileage (since we do drive to granbury quite a bit)
* interior condition (i'm a leather snob)
* the exterior (aka, does griffin think it looks cool enough?)
we are always super conscious about the terms of our loan agreements on cars, never wanting to go over 48 months. however, if we do decide to purchase a car brand new, we might consider doing a 60 month if we know we can grow into it. although griffin loves getting new cars every few years, i told him the days of that are officially over. the next car we get needs to be suitable for our family for at least 5 years, if not longer. no questions asked.
i'll give you more updates as the car shopping saga continues...
love,
maggie
12 comments:
I have a Honda Pilot which I LOVE. It has the 3rd row seat which folds down for tons of storage space when you don't need the 3rd row. I highly recommend it!
okay i gotta give you my best advice! i went to the lincoln dealership in weatherford and just KNEW that i couldn't afford anything there. this was after i had been to several chevy and ford dealerships and found things that were so far out of my price range. so the lincoln dealership was really just for grins and i was SHOCKED to find that they pretty much GIVE AWAY their used vehicles because, in the words of the salesman, they "don't make anything off of the used ones so they just try to push them off the lot." i got a navigator that was 4 years old with 40K miles on it in great condition that had been owned by one owner and garaged the entire time. i got it for $16000 which was $4000 LESS than kelly blue book said a dealership should sell it. that was 2 years ago and i checked into it recently and found that if i bought the exact same vehicle right now, they should still sell it to me for a little bit more than they did! i signed a 4 year note and my payments are relatively small! so after all of this rambilng, i HIGHLY recommend going to a luxury dealership to just see what they have in the used car area. it was totally worth it for me.
I DO NOT reccomend the FJ cruiser. The back doors are awkward and hard to get a baby carrier in and out of!
we're kind of in the same boat but I don't want a different car the hubs does. I drive a Volkswagon CC and it only seats 4 although it is bigger than the Passat. I don't mind having a car and a baby. When we get around to baby #2 then I'll worry about it. Jonathan drives a wrangler which doesn't bother me with the baby but he may change jobs next year and the gas milage on that thing is terrible. Here is my 2 cents on SUVs. I HATE third rows! They are uncomfortable unless it's a suburban or and expedition. The expedition 3rd row is the same level as the 2nd row so your knees aren't in your chest (which you won't be riding back there but someone else might have to). Also, when you have the third row in on any SUV the storage is terrible unless it's a suburban since those things are huge in general. I would suggest an expedition although I like the look of the Yukon/Tahoe better. None of the SUVs you listed get really good gas milage (if that's a priority)...the Traverse and Acadia are better. The only reason I even know that is because my husband talks about cars ALL THE TIME! Ok, this NOVEL is now over! Happy car shopping!
We are looking at 4Runners! Will and I are both looking at getting new cars at the same time - I mentioned at the shower his is a sporty 2 door and mine is just getting up there in age. We went and test drove the 4runner last week and it was so nice! It drove really well and was very roomy but not too big like a 'burb or minivan haha. It doesn't get the best gas mileage but I guess it depends on who would be driving it as to wether that would be a big problem. Will has a two hour round-trip commute everyday so clearly he wouldn't be driving it, but I think it would be fine for around town! Good luck on finding the perfect "mom" car!
I vote for the 4-runner. :) I think the new ones are beyond beautiful. I drive a newer model Toyota Sequoia, and can fit three grown adults in my third row. We debated between it and the Suburban, but I felt like I was driving a boat with the Suburban whereas I feel like I'm driving something more manageable with the Sequoia, even though its not much smaller. I attribute it to good vision in the driver's seat. I'm not sure if the 4-runners have many of the same details, but I love that my third row reclines (hard to find), you can move the 2nd row forward if you need more room in the third, and all of the seats in the 2 row move individually.. if you need to put a baby in the center closer forward you can, a sleeping child on the left can recline while the others are upright, or you can lay the center seat (or any seat) down while the others are up.. to fit lumber or whatever. I love not having a 2/1 split.
loved my expedition. hated the gas mileage. we just switched to a tiny mazda cx7 for 1/2 the price and double the gas mileage, but what i want to recommend is the toyota tundra for griffin. we LOVE casey's. honestly, the best four door truck on the market. bigger, safer, nicer, and of course- a toyota.
I drive a white Toyota 4Runner, like the one pictured, and the hubs has a white F150 like the one pictured. I must say I think we're set in the car department as far as when minis come along. The Tahoe, F150 and Expedition will get ya just as much MPGs as your Jeep did. I had one before my 4Runner. I might suggest leaving your hubby's car be, selling the Jetta yourself and purchasing a 4Runner (I might be biased). Good luck!
We LOVE our Chevys. We have a silverado and an Equinox. The equinox is not really the same size as the other suvs you're looking at, though. Have you driven the fords? We thought they rode really rough - more like a truck than the other SUVs.
One thing to consider would be the size of the car seat. We moved to Vermont a few years ago and got a Subaru, which we love. But now with baby #1 on the way, we just installed our car seat and it's uncomfortable. We're certainly not going to go get a new car or car seat for the 6-8 months that this carseat would be in use, but it's defintely something you should keep in mind when car shopping - make sure there's enought room not only for the car seat but for yourselves in the front as well!
My lease is up in January (which I do not recommend doing) so we have been looking into what-will-be our next family car. I like the Toyota 4-Runner and the Highlander. My friend is loving her Honda Pilot, which was voted Top Used Mid-Size SUV from Edmunds.com, so now we are looking at that too. Love the idea about looking at the luxury dealer... makes sense! Can't wait to see what you go with :)
My hubby and I have both kept our 4-door cars and been totally fine--even with two kids and two carseats. I can even fit my double jogger into the back of our Toyota Camry. You'd be surprised at how much space you DON'T need with a baby. They're actually pretty small creatures...Not that new cars aren't fun... :) Happy decision-making!
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